ABSTRACT
This chapter reports the use of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) and the use of Rational Resilience Credos in reducing irrational beliefs and increasing resilient qualities, in a case study of an elite Malaysian squash athlete. With the growth of REBT literature in sport, more focus can be given to specific techniques advocated in REBT, such as the use of a Rational Resilience Credo (Dryden, 2007), or more specially the use of an Athlete Rational Resilience Credo (ARRC: Turner, 2016a). The Athlete Rational Resilience Credo specifically serves as a tool which aids the practice of REBT within sports settings. A credo is a set of beliefs which influences the way individuals live. The author provided sport psychology provision to the National Sports Institute of Malaysia, for an athlete who presented high levels of self-reported irrational beliefs and low self-reported resilience. The athlete received five one-to-one REBT sessions, a major part of which included the development of a new and personal credo which focused on rationality and resilience. The athlete’s qualitative perceptions were also gathered to assess changes in beliefs and resilience, and overall perceptions of the work completed. The results of the work are discussed in relation to changes in key variables, the athlete’s perceptions of change and delivery of REBT, and in particular the use of credos. An emphasis is placed on the practice of REBT with Malaysian athletes, offering insights into cultural variances and challenges as a practitioner. The author also reflects on effective aspects of the work, and ineffective aspects, providing a detailed session-by-session summary of the work completed.
